Paul Francke

Paul Francke (c. 1537, Weimar - 10 November 1615, Wolfenbüttel) was a German Renaissance architect, most notable as director of works for the Duchy of Brunswick-Lüneburg from 1564 until his death in 1615. His works include the Juleum Novum in Helmstedt, the Marienkirche in Wolfenbüttel (where he is also buried) and the Burganlage in Erichsburg.

Life

Since he was born in Weimar, he was influenced by 16th-century castles and town halls in Thuringia and Saxony. He is also recorded in 1573 as a 'Bauverwalter' or 'construction manager'. In 1575 he was put in charge of all the duke's building projects, including the fortifications for the new Heinrichstadt and Wolfenbüttel Castle, employing the Dutch engineer Wilhelm de Raet. Next he directed the construction of the college buildings (1577–78) and main 'Juleum' building (1593-1597) for the new University of Helmstedt. In 1606 he headed the reconstruction of the former abbey church at Riddagshausen Abbey. 1604–1612: The surviving part of Erichsburg 1606: Restoration of the partially-destroyed Cistercian monastery of Riddagshausen near Brunswick Begun in 1608: Marienkirche in Wolfenbüttel Begun in 1609: Schloss Salder in Salzgitter-Salder Begun in 1613: Zeughaus und Schlossturm in Wolfenbüttel 1613: Design for a new version of the Liebfrauenkirche in Hornburg im Harz.

Bibliography (in German) Elmar Arnhold: Francke, Paul. In: Horst-Rüdiger Jarck, Dieter Lent u. a. (ed.): Braunschweigisches Biographisches Lexikon – 8. bis 18. Jahrhundert. Appelhans Verlag, Braunschweig 2006, , S. 227–228.

Kurt Seeleke: Paul Francke, ein fürstlicher Baumeister zu Wolfenbüttel. In: Braunschweigisches Jahrbuch. (= Dissertation 1939) Dritte Folge 1, 1940, , S. 29–57. Friedrich Thöne: Unter Heinrich Julius (Arbeiten vor 1600, Ausbau 1600–1612, Paul Francke und die Befestigung). In: Wolfenbüttel in der Spätrenaissance. Topographie und Baugeschichte unter den Herzögen Heinrich Julius und Friedrich Ulrich (1589 bis 1634). (= Braunschweigisches Jahrbuch. 35). Waisenhaus-Buchdruckerei, Braunschweig 1954, , digisrv-1.biblio.etc.tu-bs.de (PDF, S. 13 ff). Harmen Thies: Das Juleum novum – Paul Francke. Festvortrag in der Aula des Juleums, in der Reihe Beiträge zur Geschichte des Landkreises und der ehemaligen Universität Helmstedt. Heft 9, Landkreis Helmstedt, Helmstedt 1997. Falko Rost: Der Architekt Paul Francke und die Kirche Mariae Beatae Virginis (BMV) in Wolfenbüttel. In: Bernd Feicke, Harzverein für Geschichte und Altertumskunde e.V (Hrsg.): Harz-Zeitschrift 2013, 65. Jahrgang. Lukas Verlag, Berlin/ Wernigerode 2013, , S. 63 ff, (books.google.com).